Tuesday, 16 February 2010

The Manchurian Candidate

It’s obvious to anyone with a smattering of political theory that there has to be some philosophy, some guiding principle behind Barack Obama’s drive towards social equality, based upon ever expanding government intervention. It’s possible, I suppose, to place this within a left-Democrat tradition, a tradition going back to FDR, architect of the New Deal, that blend of socialist and fascist economics.

But FDR was a no intellectual; his political programme was always based on a mixture of fashion, opportunism and instinct. Not so Obama; his programme is rooted in Marxism, the elements of which he embraced in college. I have this on excellent authority.

Dr John Drew, himself once a doctrinaire Marxist, and now a libertarian, met Obama in 1980 when was a sophomore at Occidental College in Los Angeles. He was part of a group engaging in the kind of things students have always done - hanging out and setting the world to rights by moonlight. Obama took a hard-line point of view, arguing for a socialist government in the United States. Drew says;

He was arguing a straightforward Marxist-Leninist class-struggle point of view, led by revolutionaries who would overthrow the capitalist system and institute a new socialist government that would redistribute wealth…The idea was basically that wealthy people were exploiting others. That this was the secret of their wealth, that they weren’t paying others enough for their work, and they were using and taking advantage of other people. He was convinced that a revolution would take place, and it would be a good thing.The Newsmax report on this issue quite rightly highlights just how little we know about Obama’s background, a rather strange oversight in a country where even fairly minor runners for office often come under intense media scrutiny. Drew tried to raise this particular issue during the 2008 election but his voice was simply lost.

Drew also highlighted the close relationship at Occidental between Obama and Mohammed Hasan Chandoo, his roommate from Pakistan, who was also present at this late-night impromptu seminar. When Chandoo, now a financial consultant, was questioned about his old friend’s opinions he said that he can’t remember him ever talking like that, ever expressing any interest in Marxism. But this is a man, I have to stress, who has a very selective memory. He also said that he had not seen Obama since before he became a senator, clearly a lie, as he is listed as a guest at a Ramadan dinner held in the White House last year.

There is other, more immediate evidence of Obama’s guiding ideology. His opinions seem to bear a very close resemblance to those of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, his minister and mentor, whom he has described as his “sounding board” for twenty years. Wright advanced what he called a ‘Black Value System’, in which he denounces “our racist competitive society” and something he calls “middle-classness.” Despite his influence Wright is unlikely now to enjoy a White House junket. Why? That’s simple: “Them Jews aren’t going to let him talk to me”, as he told The Newport News last summer. What an explosive mixture: Marxism, anti-middle class radicalism, hostility towards wealth creation and a racist anti-racist! What next, I wonder, what more is there to be discovered in Obama’s rather shadowy background? He himself is largely responsible for the endless speculation. Not only are his published memoirs highly selective in nature but he continues to refuse to release early documentation about his life, including his Harvard Law School transcripts and his senior thesis at Columbia.

Some of you, I’m sure, will know a movie called The Manchurian Candidate, either the original or the remake. Are we dealing, I wonder, with the most successful case of ‘entryism’ in all of human history? Please, please, if you are inclined to be humourless and literal-minded I would ask you to pause for a moment before rushing to the key board: I’m joking. Or, there again, am I? :-))

Don't be confused, Nitin. There is some degree of speculation, yes. I don't think it makes him look shady, just evasive. All politicians have something to hide, some aspect of their past that they are uncomfortable with. Besides, I like having fun with things like this. :-)

About Me

Hi, I'm Ana! History is my passion -and that is not too strong a word - but I also enjoy politics, philosophy, art, literature and travel. In addition I have a deep interest in witchcraft, in all of the ancient arts. Apart from that I'm a keen sportswoman. I play lacrosse and tennis, but I love riding most of all. I have my own horse, Annette.